Building Something New in Kenya
It has been 11 months since my first hire in Kenya, we just got our 6th, and the 7th is starting in a few weeks.
Having never worked permanently outside of South Africa, or had previous experience in starting a new office in foreign territory, this is a milestone to celebrate.
I will never forget November of last year (2018) when I touched down in my new home of Nairobi. Having been there multiple times before for work I had assumed it would be as easy as it was back in Cape Town. I was so wrong. With no ground support I was put in a situation where I had to: find a home, hire 3 people, find an office, establish a routine, maintain client relationships, and establish some kind of balance through it all. I had 30 days to do this all and report back to Cape Town.
What really happened was 60 interviews, 15+ house viewings, 10+ office space viewings, multiple client meetings, tears, seven extra kilos of weight, managerial fights, a team member resignation, more tears, miscommunication, giving up, personal debt, and I ignored my parents and friends.
Relocating for something established is one thing, but relocating on your own to field the game with the expectation of playing the same game without a team, is well, total war on everything you are.
Michael Bobak is quoted as saying, “All progress takes place outside the comfort zone”, and it has been 11 months of this.
I realised why it was possible to make it through the war, to never stop waking up with dark eyes, and constant shots of caffeine (and everything else that claimed to keep you up). It is the difference between the finite and infinite game (more on this Podcast). The former suggests an activity that has an end result after a defined period of time (Sport games are a great example). The latter is an activity that never ends and something you strive for. In this case it was building a team, with a specific company culture, that integrated into the a sustainable way of doing business.
As I celebrate my 12 months of moving to Kenya, I can finally say I am more relaxed, established, and at peace with the operational nature of the company. I can also say that the team we have is incredible with what they have managed to achieve (targets, relationships, life-balance, and incredible ideas). More importantly, I get more: sleep, time with friends and family, I’ve lost those seven kilos and more, there are less tears, and generally more happiness
What comes next, naturally, is another war of an unknown nature, but one that I will fight with more experience and a refreshed sense of what it means to be a leader in a foreign space.
